Marc Randolph is a veteran Silicon Valley entrepreneur, advisor, and investor. As co-founder and first CEO of Netflix, he laid much of the groundwork for a service that’s grown to over 200 million subscribers, and fundamentally altered how the world experiences media.
He also served on the Netflix board of directors until retiring from the company in 2003. Marc’s career as an entrepreneur spans four decades. He’s founded or co-founded six other successful startups, mentored hundreds of early-stage entrepreneurs, and as an investor has helped seed dozens of successful tech ventures (and just as many unsuccessful ones).
Most recently, Marc co-founded analytics software company Looker Data Sciences, which was acquired by Google in 2019 for $2.6 billion. He currently sits on the boards of Solo Brands, Augment Technologies, Dishcraft Technologies and the Truckee Donner Land Trust.
Marc is also the author of the internationally best-selling memoir, That Will Never Work: The Birth of Netflix and The Amazing Life of an Idea which tells the untold story of Netflix. He is host of the top-10 Apple podcast That Will Never Work, where he works directly with entrepreneurs to provide 1-on-1 mentoring. Marc is also a judge and investor on Entrepreneur Magazine’s Elevator Pitch web series.
Talking Points
That Will Never Work: The birth of Netflix and the amazing life of an idea
Netflix Founder and startup CEO Marc Randolph shares the unlikely story of how a handful of dreamers with no money and a bad idea, created the company that eventually brought down Blockbuster. Packed with dozens of stories that trace the dramatic ups and downs of those first exciting years, Marc weaves an inspiring story that shows the value of innovation, persistence and optimism. Along the way he shares some of the many values that he believes made Netflix successful, including a focus on analytics and testing, its novel corporate culture, and its almost fanatical obsession with focus. Equal parts inspiration, start up story, and practical tips, it’s a message that resonates well with anyone who appreciates a good “overcoming adversity” story.
That Will Never Work: The birth of Netflix and the amazing life of an idea
Fireside Chat with Marc Randolph
In this conversational format, Marc will address questions on the following topics: The birth of Netflix, entrepreneurship, innovation, Marc’s bestselling book, That Will Never Work; the value of persistence and optimism in business, leadership, company culture, tech ventures, Marc’s successes/failures at Netflix & other companies, Marc’s podcast, environmental advocacy and balance.
Fireside Chat with Marc Randolph
Video
Innovation Keynote
Marc Randolph presents the process for developing innovative ideas that lead him to the launch of Netflix.Innovation Fireside Chat
Marc Randolph in a town hall setting presents the process for developing innovative ideas that lead him to the launch of Netflix.Marc Randolph & Innovation Overview
Marc Randolph presents the process for developing innovative ideas that lead him to the launch of Netflix.This short video features an interview with Marc and edited segments of his different presentation styles for both corporate and college audiences.
